Searching for Dietary Truth

Searching for Dietary Truth

 

Kyle D Christensen, DC, ND, MH

Misinformation seems to be coming at us from nearly every direction. The media, the politicians, the food manufacturing industry, the drug industry, and any other group or organization that wants our support or money. The benefits we enjoy by living in a free market in a country with the right of free speech carries with it the cost of sometimes being manipulated. 

 

This is also true of what we are being encouraged to eat. The pharmaceutical and food manufacturing industries (dairy and beef especially) have a pretty tight grip on the information and misinformation that is put in front of us.  Believe everything they say, and dinnertime would be reduced to microwaving processed pre-packaged foods followed by a handful of pills to offset the symptoms of the health issues that ensue.

 

It sure would be nice if we had a standard on which to judge our dietary practices. Well, we do. While it may not be laid out in the form of a pyramid or pie/plate chart, the Scriptures give us much more information than most may realize.

 

As I have studied and have begun to understand what I should eat, I have been pleased to discover that God's recommendations line up very well with what the research is showing.

 

First let me touch on a popular diet trend that does not line up with what I feel is absolute truth; that being the Ketogenic diet. This diet was popularized by Dr. Atkins in the 1960's. Today ketogenic diets are known as Paleo, Primal, Low-Carb and a plethora of catchy names. The concept is to deprive your body of it's primary fuel (glucose) so fat (ketones) are metabolized instead.  This meat/fat/protein rich and carbohydrate poor diet can result in weight loss, reduce risk for type 2 diabetes, help protect against some cancers, fight brain disease & neurological disorders. All of this is great; however, there are a couple of major problems that researchers and advocates are often unwilling to look at. The low-carb ketogenic diet is not sustainable.  Secondly, the Low-Carb diet seems to only shine if you are eating lower protein as well. What?! Yeah, the low carb diet can work, but you also need to lay off the meat for optimal results. Researchers agree that a "properly formulated low carb diet" is more plant based than animal based. Peddlers of low carb don't tend to point this out. And eating this "properly formulated diet can require some pretty processed foods to keep it low-carb. The primary problem is when someone does low-carb or keto, they do not eat a "properly formulated low carb diet". They eat lots of meat, dairy and eggs - which do cause health issues and problems.

 

 

In a controlled study, which often will provide and deliver the food, patients are compliant (until the end of the study). However, those whose diets are restricted to only meat and vegetables (70% of your calories are from fat), get pretty sick of it and look forward to the day when they can have a baked potato or piece of bread.  I know there are exceptions, there may be those who are willing and can afford to eat this way forever. I just haven't met any of them.

  

 The other issue, of course, this is the MOST EXPENSIVE diet. That is, unless you have been suckered in to buying and popping a bunch of pills (herbs, supplements or drugs) as part of your regiment.

 

I know some of you may be blue in the face by now, but the reality is that there have not been any long-term studies. Ok, I've read the one that looked at 3 people who made it 5 years on the low-carb diet, and yes their health appeared to be good. But seriously, besides these 3 people, are there any studies supporting this?  Most "long-term" studies in the benefits of the ketogenic diet are only 24 weeks long. 

 

I am not disputing that eating this way can produce some positive results. What I am saying, is the results are short lived because it is rare that anyone will eat this way for the rest of their life.  For most people, the ketogenic approach is not sustainable or cost effective (more on the cost later). I will confess, there was one ketogenic diet that proved to be successful. It was one that included NO meat or animal products.  A vegan keto, if you will. Very expensive, but it was do-able.  The reality however is that it is very rare to find someone doing keto who is not eating lots of meat, dairy and eggs.

 

Now looking at the other extreme is the high carb or starch diet - if you call eating bread, potatoes, pasta and rice radical and extreme.  This is the diet that was advocated by Daniel (of the Lion's Den fame) when he told the King he would not eat his meat or drink his wine and would rather eat "pulse". Pulse as translated from the Hebrew is legumes (beans, peas and lentils). Some English translations suggest it's vegetables only, but the Hebrew is more accurate.  So this diet advocated in the Old Testament and expanded upon through out many other scriptural verse suggests a diet that is centered around starches (whole grains - wheat, rice, millet, barley, oats, corn, legumes/beans, root vegetables - potatoes, sweet potatoes - , vegetables, fruits, nuts and seeds).  The "staff of life" or the major source of calories are the starches, which is surprisingly contrary to many vegan and vegetarian approaches.  This type of diet is not restrictive in how much you eat. Because of the high fiber content of this diet, you will obtain and maintain an ideal weight. And because you are eating your bodies preferred choice of fuel (starches), energy is high.

An Example of a Starch Based Diet

  

And compared to the ketogenic diet research (which has very limited research being done), the high carb - eat whole grains, vegetable and fruits approach to health has tens of thousands of studies validating its benefit and effectiveness.  So what about lectins? Beans and grains contain lectins and they're bad right?  Well, not exactly. Some can be harmful while others are helpful (ie. Preventing and attacking cancers). Without going into a whole other topic let me just say - don't eat your dry beans or whole grains crunchy and raw and uncooked, then lectins will not be a problem.

 

When it comes to improving health, preventing and reversing disease, the starch-based whole-food diet proves to be effective not only in quick improvement, but also long-term results AND long-term compliance.

These are a few of the conditions PROVEN to benefit from the Starch centered diet.

 

• Arthritis: AS(ankylosing Spondylitis), Gout, Psoriatic, Rheumatoid)
• Atherosclerosis (Heart Disease, Carotid artery disease, Stroke)
• Asthma
• Cancers (Colon, Breast, Uterus, Ovary, Kidney, Prostate)
• Cataracts & Macular Degeneration
• Colitis (Crohn's Disease, Ulcerative Colitis, IBS [Irritable Bowel Disease])
• Constipation
• Dementia (Alzheimer's, Cognitive Dysfunction)
• Diabetes
• Diverticulitis
• Erectile Dysfunction
• Gallstones
• Gastritis (ulcers)
• Hearing loss
• Hemorrhoids
• Hiatus hernia
• Hypertension
• Kidney Disease
• Multiple Sclerosis
• Obesity
• Osteoporosis
• Parkinson's Disease
• Varicose veins

 

Now, this starch-based diet excludes meat, poultry, fish, eggs, dairy and is very low fat. Yikes!!! How can anyone live without all of what we've grown to love?  Let's take a look to the Old Testament in the Bible.  Ask this question: So if God's people were told to eat this basically vegetarian diet, aren't they going to be missing out on some essential nutrients? The answer if YES! But God's brilliance shines through here. Rather than telling people to be strict vegans (no animal products in any way, shape or form), the children of Israel were taught to perform animal sacrifices during their holy days.  Each family would bring the appropriate animal to the priest (which they raised or purchased).  The animal would be sacrificed, symbolic of Gods ultimate sacrifice of His son. A portion of the meat would be given to the priest and the remainder taken home for the family to prepare and consume.

 

So as I see it, we can be pretty strict vegetarians but every few weeks, we have a barbeque. This approach is brilliant. A Vegetarian, that cheats once in a while. No vitamin B12 deficiency. Enough Iron, Zinc, and everything else we need from the occasional eating of animal flesh. Additionally, by eating animal products once in a while, you can escape the mental and emotional mindset of being "a vegan or vegetarian" that can result in an attitude of judgment towards others and sometimes borderlines a mental disorder.

 

Two prominent religious groups have dietary codes that when followed result in tremendous health and longevity. The Seventh-Day Adventists and the Latter-Day Saints (Mormons).  Both Christian groups advocate abstinence of tobacco and drinking alcohol, as well as to eat a vegetarian diet with the option to include animal products in times of great need.  The Adventists report that about 35% of its congregants are vegetarian. While the Mormons also abstain from coffee and tea, they seem to pay little attention to eating animal flesh "sparingly". The dietary recommendations of these two groups is well worth a more devoted study and application. The LDS diet teaches that grains and starches should be the "Staff of Life" contributing the majority of our calories with the addition of seasonal fruits and vegetables. This "staff of life" is the primary villain in the ketogenic arena.

 

Next comes the issue of cost. The average cost of eating a Ketogenic Diet is about $21 per day per person. (I know some claim to do it on the cheap - but who wants to eat roadkill - just kidding). For two adults, this comes to $1,260 per month.  Wow! Can you imagine feeding a family of six this way. Usually I see mom OR dad eating this way, but not the rest of the family because it costs too much. Even those who argue this diet's virtues are eating their steak and eggs while the kids continue to eat cold cereal and ramen.  Another issue to consider is that animal products are the most likely foods to be contaminated with pathogens or tainted with antibiotics, drugs and hormones.

 

On the brighter side of the dietary plate, the starch based diet comes in at around $3 to 3.50 per day with a monthly cost of $180 to 210 per month for two. This includes lots of fresh fruit, vegetables, whole grains, potatoes, etc.  Woohoo, at this low cost you could easily afford to buy organic. Now, if money is an issue at all with your family finances, the vegetarian way is definitely more attractive. If you were to calculate eating some meat a couple times per month, your cost would go up a little but not much. Heck, even if you ate starched-based for 3 or 4 days per week, you would reap both health and financial benefits. 

 

There are several very good resources for more information. One of the best is Michael Greger, MD website: www.nutritionfacts.org. As well as his book: How Not to Die, where each chapter discusses how not to die from one of the top 15 killers in America. Such as How not to die of heart disease, How not to die from diabetes, etc.

 

Of course, the stricter you follow this starch-based diet, the quicker will be your return to health. But any changes in this direction will be positive.

 

Understand that both of these diets require that you give up junk foods, soda pop, candy, highly processed food, etc. Everything you should expect from a diet concerned with health.

 

So bringing this discussion back to my original concern - We hate the misinformation and subtle dishonesty related to diet. And sadly most of us don't examine the footnoted resources that far too often misquote the research. So is the ketogenic diet frenzy lying to us? Yes and No. There are definite provable results to eating keto for certain health concerns. But it appears that the large quantity of meat and animal products are problematic. For most of us, the low-carb diet is not sustainable and very expensive.  Eating a starch-based whole food diet is a plan that has a long track record of health and longevity (see my article on the Blue Zones). The starch-based diet is full of the foods we love and crave - bread, potatoes, rice, pasta, and corn.  You don't need to write off meat, ice cream or any of the rich foods you've grown accustom to enjoying - only save them for special occasions (and no, every day cannot be special).

 

There are absolute truths and relative truth in life. I personally believe the human body was designed to eat from the bounty of what is grown in nature. I believe our diets should be predominantly plant-based and very occasionally animal flesh.  To me this is an absolute truth. The animal-based ketogenic dietary approach is more of a relative or situational truth. Yes, you can get results but the low carb or keto diet is not designed for a long-term lifestyle. Even much of the research suggests keto for 24 weeks to be followed by the Mediterranean Diet (starch-based diet) for long-term to maintain your health improvements.

 

This starch-based diet (what and how to eat) is spelled out more clearly on my Blog - click here.Also check out my YouTube channel for recipes and meal ideas.  The key to good health really is eating delicious food and this healthy starch-based diet has endless possibilities.

 

Bon Appetite!

 

Dr Kyle Christensen

December 15, 2017

Starch-Based Diet for Ultimate Health & Longevity

What do ALL of these Disease Conditions Have in Common?

·       Arthritis: AS(ankylosing Spondylitis), Gout, Psoriatic, Rheumatoid)

·       Atherosclerosis (Heart Disease, Carotid artery disease, Stroke)

·       Asthma

·       Cancers (Colon, Breast, Uterus, Ovary, Kidney, Prostate)

·       Cataracts & Macular Degeneration

·       Colitis (Crohn’s Disease, Ulcerative Colitis, IBS [Irritable Bowel Disease])

·       Constipation

·       Dementia (Alzheimer’s, Cognitive Dysfunction)

·       Diabetes

·       Diverticulitis

·       Erectile Dysfunction

·       Gallstones

·       Gastritis (ulcers)

·       Hearing loss

·       Hemorrhoids

·       Hiatus hernia

·       Hypertension

·       Kidney Disease

·       Multiple Sclerosis

·       Obesity

·       Osteoporosis

·       Parkinson’s Disease

·       Varicose veins

They can ALL be PREVENTED or REVERSED by the same Diet!

 A Starch-Based Diet 

for 

Ultimate Health & Longevity

A Whole-Food, Plant-Based Diet has been proven through medical research time and again specifically how this diet helps. ‘Whole food’ means very limited or no processed foods (including refined oils). ‘Plant based’ means meals based on plant rather than animal foods (which include meat, fish, dairy, and eggs).   Basically, the diet is: unprocessed vegetables, fruits, legumes (beans, peas and lentils), and whole grains/starches (wheat, oats, rice, corn, potatoes).  While this pretty much describes a healthy vegan diet, however, cheating once in a while (lets say a couple times a month) will keep you from being so rigid, that you become judgmental of others (that became a problem for me years ago when I was a strict vegetarian). What is more radical eating oatmeal, beans and rice or having your chest sawed open and having the heart re-plumbed?

The stricter you follow this type of diet, the quicker will be your return to health.

But any changes in this direction will be positive

What to Eat

Grains and other starch foods (in whole form): Starches (complex unrefined carbohydrates) are the foundation of a good diet.  They should be the bulk of your calories. Eat whole grains, the more unprocessed the better. Wheat, rice, oats, quinoa, millet, etc. Other healthy starches include: potatoes, yams, sweet potatoes, parsnips, winter squashes, beans, lentils and peas.

Vegetables: For maximum weight loss make vegetables one third to one half of your meal.  Eat higher fat vegetables sparingly: Avocados, coconut, olives.

Fruits: Whole fruits are far superior to processed fruits (applesauce, juices, smoothies, and dried fruits). Limit fruits to 2 per day for weight loss.

Herbs & Spices: Use sea salt to taste. Season food with culinary herbs and spices to enhance the flavors in your meals.

Foods to Avoid

No meat (beef, lamb, pork, game)

No Poultry (chicken, turkey, etc.)

No Fish (including shellfish)

No Dairy of any kind (milk, yogurt, cheese)

No eggs (not even egg whites or Egg Beaters)

No oil (not even extra virgin olive oil, coconut or processed canola, corn, soy, safflower oils)

Highly refined processed foods (generally, the more processed the food, the more unhealthy)

Foods to Limit

Sugars (stick to health sweeteners such as maple syrup, honey. Dried fruits are also very sweet and should be limited)

Fruit juices (go easy on them, they are generally very sweet and don’t have the fiber to offset the concentrated amounts of sugar in them.

Soy products (stick to traditional soy foods such as miso, tofu, edamame, tempeh, and soymilk) avoid the ‘fake foods’ made from soy

Nuts and seeds and their butters (lots of nutrients, but also lots of fat. Limit if you’re trying to lose weight or if you have heart disease).

High Fat Plant Foods (Don’t overeat avocados, olives or coconut, especially if trying to lose weight or if you have heart disease.)

 I have long taught that we should be Vegetarians that Cheat. Of course, if it is your plan to stray from a strict regiment, then it is not really cheating.  Once you have achieved your health and weight goal, it is permissible and even wise to stray a couple times per month. A strict vegan diet can result in deficiency of vitamin B-12, which can result in anemia.  Eating animal product (meat, yogurt, cheese, or eggs) a couple times per month will provide you with what you need. 

Understand that ANYTHING you do to improve the quality of your diet will benefit your health. Some just jump right in and make a major change, others will begin by eliminating junk food and begin to make their meals from scratch at home. You may start by adding more fruit and vegetables to your diet. Reduce the added fats. Switch to Almond milk on your cereal rather than cow’s milk. The key is to start thinking about what it is you want with your health. Begin by watching some videos on YouTube by Dr. John McDougall or Dr. Michael Greger (see also nutritionfacts.org).  Of course, if you need to lose weight or recover from a health issue, I welcome you to jump right in.

Examples of What to Eat

Breakfast: Whole Grain hot Cereal (oats, 10-grain, brown rice, or Congee) with Almond/Cashew Milk with honey for a sweetener and fresh berries.

Hash Browns (fried without oil on non-stick pan) with ketchup

Lunch and Dinner: Focus on a Starch, Beans, and Veggies

Starch – Brown rice, pasta (whole grain), potatoes, corn (tortillas, etc.)

Beans – black, pintos, garbanzos, etc. make into refried, hummus, salad, etc.

Veggies –steamed broccoli, carrots, etc. Makes sauces (fat-free marinara, non-dairy mushroom/cream sauce, stir-fry sauce, etc.) Salads with fat-free dressings

Lunch is usually leftover from dinner.

Snacks: Always have something to grab when you begin to feel hungry. Fruit, Popcorn (spray with soy sauce them add nutritional yeast and sea salt), potato slices, corn tortilla (dip in salsa), raw veggies, cold cereal (whole grain with low sugar/fat and almond milk)

Quick Ideas: Sandwiches or tortilla wraps: Whole grain sourdough bread, mustard &/or hummus and veggies (sprouts, cucumbers, tomatoes, etc.)

Tortillas - (corn, whole wheat, etc.) Add beans, rice and salsa

Soup - Vegetable with added beans and or pasta

Pasta - (no egg -whole grain – search to find one you like) top with vegan low-fat sauces

Salad - Lots of greens and veggies, dressing 3-2-1 3T. vinegar - 2T.mustard - 1T. maple syrup.

Potatoes - mashed, baked, fries, sweet potatoes –no fat added (no butter, sour cream) Say yes to salsa and ketchup

What to Drink – Water, mineral water (not flavored with chemical or sweeteners)

Kyle D Christensen, DC, ND,MH     November 2017

Forgiveness

Forgiveness:

Breaking the Chains & Setting you Free

I believe that God allows us to have problems, trials and issues for our growth, benefit and learning. Our thoughts and emotions drive our physiology. When we experience strong emotions, hormones are released that trigger the body to respond accordingly. Feeling of love and gratitude bring forth a response of healing, better digestion and relaxation.  Feelings of fear, worry and anxiety bring tension, inflammation and pain.

When someone hurts, abuses, humiliates, falsely accuses, betrays, abandons, lies about or makes you feel unworthy, it often leads us to feelings of bitterness.  Bitterness gets a foothold.  You begin to mentally keep a record of how you were wronged.  You think about, recount and remember the experience.  You think on all the wrong things that have been done to you and every time that person’s face comes to mind, a high octane ‘ping’ goes off inside of you. Un-forgiveness has entered your heart.

This un-forgiveness leads to resentment as you meditate (think about over and over) the wrongs and offenses against you. You fume and steam over it internally.  Chemicals are secreted in response to your emotions can put your body in to a state of dis-ease.  These chemicals, carried by negative emotions, give you that bad feeling in your gut every time that person comes to mind.  Resentment keeps the un-forgiveness in place. Your unhappy state can result in damage to your body as health problems are manifest in the areas where you are individually prone based on your inherited or genetic profile.

Un-forgiveness and resentment can progress to feelings of retaliation, anger, hatred, violence and even murder (even if it’s ‘only’ the assassination of the persons character).  You will not be able to remove bitterness from your life until you deal with un-forgiveness and resentment.  If you engage in negative speaking, gossip, slander or character trashing, you are not over your bitterness and un-forgiveness.

You can choose to forgive and overcome evil with good. God will forgive Whom He will forgive, but it is required of us to forgive everyone. By forgiving, you open the way for God’s wrath and you allow Him to repay the evil that was done to you and to be your vindicator.  God has said “Vengeance is mine” – not yours. In the end everything will be balanced and fair (actually when you repent and forgive, you will be blessed MORE than you deserve – and I’m not talking about some distant time in the eternities, but here and now).

Without mastering the issue of forgiveness, you will keep spinning your wheels in your efforts to get well from your physical and mental/emotional problems.  Forgiveness is a big missing link in healing.  Forgiveness is a prerequisite to all healing.  There is just no way around it.  God’s promise of health can be yours, however with every promise God has a condition. You can’t claim His promises without being prepared to meet His conditions.

The Condition for Healing is Repentance. Repentance involves asking God to forgive you for the sin that caused your disease.  Understand that sin is when we turn our heart, mind or actions against God and His Spirit, not simply violating one of the 10 commandments. When you repent to God for serving the sin (thoughts and attitudes) that caused your disease, do you think that He will forgive you?  It depends.  You see, God’s forgiveness for you is conditional.  The scriptures teach very clearly that you cannot ask God to forgive you if you are not prepared to forgive all those who have hurt and wronged you.  And so, un-forgiveness is a major block to healing. What we harbor in the inner recesses of our heart may be the exact thing that is preventing your well-being.  Socrates declared “The unexamined life is not worth living”. And so your healing will require some self-examination.

We like to think that we can stay angry with other people and yet go to God and receive forgiveness for our sins.  But the scriptures teach us that God’s forgiveness to you is in direct relationship to your willingness to forgive your brother.  In other words, you will not get anything from Heaven (ie. Forgiveness) that you are not prepared to give to others (and that includes forgiving yourself and God – more on that later).  Un-forgiveness is a luxury you cannot afford to have. Unforgiveness can literally eat away at your soul, corroding it like battery acid that slowly eats away at your spirit and self identity, resulting in ugliness and roughness physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. 

Your Healing Hinges on Your Forgiveness

It makes no difference who was right or wrong.  What is important is that you are the forgiver. It is important that you get your own heart right with God. You don’t have to prove that you are right, you have to prove that you are willing to forgive. Listen to me, it does not matter who was right. Stop trying to justify your anger, hurt, and pain. The only thing that matters is that YOU are the forgiver. You are the one who lets go of the pain and the poison. Drop it. Let it go.  Let Go and Let God, as they teach in Alcoholics Anonymous.

You don’t have to carry someone else’s sin inside of you. That is their sin. God will be their judge. Your job is to release and forgive them. Your freedom, spirituality and physicality does not depend on their resolution – it depends on your resolution between you and God.  Mother Teresa taught,   “In the final analysis, it is between you and God.  It was never between you and them anyway.” Please understand that this issue of hanging on to hurt (un-forgiveness) is perhaps a divinely sanctioned opportunity for you to rise above pain and prove to God that you are willing to truly follow Him by forgiving.  Let go and completely give your pain, burden, and injury to God with the full faith, trust and confidence that He will handle it and do what is best and right taking everything in to consideration. That is what real FAITH is about.

If it is possible for you to go and make peace with that person, do so. But if it is not possible because the person is not willing to restore the relationship or even talk to you, the person has died or you don’t know where the person is, never mind – what is important is that you get your own heart right with God. Understand that you do not have to resolve a single issue with somebody that has victimized you in order for God to heal you, so long as you have resolved that issue between you and God concerning them. You don’t have to wait for resolution between that person and you before you get healed. Feeling you need confrontation and resolution to a harmful perpetrator binds you to the tragedy and victimization, which is not what God expects or wants from you.

If you have something from your past and it is not possible for you to make right with the other person, you just need to make it right with God. It is dealt with because God judges it by the integrity of your heart. You don’t have to carry the guilt any longer. If somebody is holding a sin against you, it is their problem, not yours. They have to get right with God just as you do. Whether they do or don’t, it doesn’t have anything to do with you because you stand alone before God in the integrity of your heart. You don’t have to have it resolved with that person in order to be free.

Forgiveness is Not a Feeling, it is a Decision – An Act of Your Will

When you forgive others, you are not letting them off the hook, but you are giving them to God. Now you are off the hook.  When you forgive someone, you have got to separate the person from their sin, just as God separated you from your sin in His heart when He saved you. To forgive, you don’t have to condone their sin. You continue to hate the sin (the abuse, betrayal, hurt, harm and injustice), but you are commanded to love the person.  Try to work into your heart separating the person from the deed. Just as we do not desire to be judged and measured based on a single event or phase of our life, so too try not to define someone by their interaction with you. Now for those who are truly evil and selfish, understand that you are collateral damage in a devilish and destructive life. Those people for sure need to be given to God! Don’t even try to fix or justify their behavior.

Jesus doesn’t stop with forgiveness. Christ commands us to love our enemies, bless those that curse you and pray for those who revile or abuse you. Ouch!  How can I do that? We are instructed to love and bless them, or in other words to speak well of them. It is not enough to merely say that we forgive others; you must be careful not to curse them or speak evil of them even if you think they deserve it. We’ve all been taught “If you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all”. But I may add, this can also be the time to say a quick prayer.  “Heavenly Father please bless this person as you know what they need in their life.” (Please don’t add ‘and give them what they deserve’.)

To work through the process of forgiveness and enjoy the peace and wholeness in health that you seek, you must do what God tells you to do, which is not only to forgive, but to go beyond that: Jesus challenges us to pray for them, bless them, speak well of them and love them. WHY? Because by doing so, you bless not only them, but yourself too! Your reward for your obedience in this area will be great, rich, strong, intense and abundant. As Luke says “Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.” (Luke 6:38)

Hating those who hurt you is like drinking poison, and hoping that your enemy will die.  Why spend your life angry at people who probably do not even know or care that you are angry? These people are going on enjoying their lives while you are thoroughly miserable. You don’t have to allow somebody else’s sin or past behavior to ruin your life. Release them, forgive them, let the offense go, let it drop. Have the same attitude that Jesus had toward His enemies. By doing this, you will experience wonderful freedom, peace and good health.  Give it to God, who will show Himself strong as your Vindicator.  Remember, once you give it to God, it is not your job to monitor His response and keep track of how He is handling things. Let Go and Let God.

Before you go to God to repent of the sin behind your disease, you need to forgive everybody who has ever hurt or wronged you. You may need to repent of your participation in the sin – even though you may have been the innocent victim of an abusive predator. Remember, God’s forgiveness and releasing you from the poisonous infection of bitterness, resentment and un-forgiveness is conditional. God cannot forgive you until you have forgiven.

I recommend that you do an exercise where you forgive everybody who has hurt or wronged you, whether living or dead. Take a moment and ask God to reveal to you everyone you need to forgive.  Who is it that when you think of them, that ‘ping’ goes off twisting your heart or stomach and making the hairs on the back of your neck stand up?  Release them and let them go. All the verbal abuse, emotional abuse, sexual abuse, physical abuse, legal entanglements, control, rejection and betrayal you have suffered … let it all go.

Say a prayer something like this:  “Heavenly Father, I pray in the name of your son, Jesus Christ, that Your Holy Spirit will minister into my life right now. Look into the depths of my heart and reveal to me where there is hardness, un-forgiveness, bitterness and resentment or anything against anybody. Please bring their names to my heart right now by the power of Your Holy Spirit. I repent to You Father for sometimes repaying evil with evil and feeling justified by it. I thought I was protecting myself when in fact I was behaving no different than the person that did evil to me.  Father I repent for participating with the sin of bitterness and un-forgiveness. As an act of my will in obedience to you, I choose to forgive  _______________________ (name the person and what they did). I am trusting you to make my forgiveness heartfelt – to forgive completely just like You do, without looking back. Please take the hardness of my heart and soften it with Your love. I pray that Your forgiveness will flow through me. Thank You for the work that You are doing in my heart right now. In Christ’s name. Amen.”

Most of us also have the need to forgive ourselves.  Bitterness is not always about others. We can feel condemnation, guilt and shame about ourselves.  Do you hold on to guilt for an issue from the past?  Often that negative self-talk of not being good enough (self-rejection) and less than (self-hatred) is not even coming from you.  Our thoughts can be influenced by an accusing evil spirit (Revelation 12:10).  You must forgive yourself. Say this out loud, “I am not guilty!”. Come on, say it - don't just read these words, say them out loud. "I am not guilty.".Some people are so deep into guilt and self-hatred that the accusing spirit attached to them will not allow them to say it because the minute they get it out and say, “I am not guilty” that lying spirit is defeated.

Say this to yourself, “I am not guilty. I have bought in with the sin of blaming myself and have been bitter against myself all these years. I have felt guilty, unworthy, ashamed and inferior and have compared myself to others. I understand now that I was designed to make mistakes so that I can learn from them. I repent Heavenly Father, for the bitterness and un-forgiveness towards myself and I forgive myself. I command, in the name of Jesus Christ, the accusing spirit that continually puts the negative thoughts of self-hatred, self-rejection and guilt into my heart and mind to be cast out from me. I ask for Your angels of light and love to tie up and carry away this dark spirit never to return. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.”

Are you angry with God?  (Boy, I struggled with this for several years after my parents untimely deaths.)  The devils wants you to blame God because He wants to create a rift and a separation in your relationship with Him.  This will steal your joy, love and passion for Him, and it opens the door to the devil in your life.  If you have anger, un-forgiveness and bitterness in your heart against God, give it up and let it go.    Say a prayer like this: “Heavenly Father, I have held anger against You. I know that You have done nothing wrong, and I am in need of Your forgiveness. But I believe that my saying, “I forgive You” will help me to let go of un-forgiveness that I have misdirected towards You. I forgive You. My problems are not Your fault. You are my answer. Please forgive me. In Christ’s name. Amen.”

You have got to come to the place where you forgive God, yourself and others before you ever go to God to repent and ask for healing of a disease or affliction.  Understand that the healing blessing from God of removing the angst, poison and bitterness from your heart is a gift that comes through the Atonement of Christ.  Just saying the words will do nothing, unless it truly comes from the heart.  That is why it is a process.  For me, I have had to pray and work within my heart to truly overcome my un-forgiveness. Like me, you may have to repeat these prayers many times.  Change is rarely instantaneous. Persistence is often required. Forgiveness must become not only a practice but an attitude.  Forgiveness (Letting Go) as well as repentance (Changing your Heart) are what is required for each of us as we progress through our mortal sojourn.  The object of our endeavor is transformation, even a mighty change or being born anew. This is a gift that can only come from God, but you must do the preparatory work. I promise you, peace and healing will come.

So what is the often overlooked key to healing from heart disease, diabetes, obesity, and depression? 
Perhaps it is Forgiveness.

Blessings,

Dr Kyle Christensen     October 2017

Revised from Dr Michelle Strydom’s book Healing begins with Sanctification of the Heart pp 630-639